5 reasons why mom sitting next to you on a work day is the best (and 5 reasons why it is not)

Lockdown has been reimposed in Mumbai and any doubts about school and office starting have been dispelled. Mom and I sit together at the same table on a working day so there are some pros and cons to this. I have put together a list of advantages and disadvantages of her next to me.

Advantage #1: Help with Maths concepts 😈

Just last year we started Linear Equations and Algebra(Sorry mom but why???? Why would you add letters to maths) and I was hopelessly lost in the concepts. But mom was next to me and she helped out. Ever since then I have got a deep(like really deep) explanation of the concepts I did not understand.

Disadvantage #1: Background interferences 🤨

The moment you unmute to answer a question, the gods decide mom has to be asked a question by her client or boss. Every single time. Seriously it’s happened every time I unmute!

Advantage #2: Fun in boring classes 🤪

You know that class where the teacher is boring, the subject is boring and the topic is boring? I have a unique solution. If mom is not on a call but I am in a boring class she at first tells me to focus but then tells me jokes if I am really bored. I think her belief is if you can’t beat them join them.

Disadvantage #2: LOUD!!!! Really LOUD!!! 🤯

Mom likes to yell a lot in calls. And I mean a LOT! My eardrums will be severely damaged by the time Work From Home and e-Learning is over. God save me!!

Advantage #3: Unboring evenings 🤣

In the evenings, mom actually plays the Nintendo Switch and watches TV with me. No complains about playing st*pid games.(Mom considers it a swear word) believe it or not.

Disadvantage #3: Custody arguments over coasters and pens 🙄

We got some pens and DC coasters online. Mom and I(mainly me) keep swapping and arguing over which coaster and pen is whose.

Advantage #4: Hindi में मदद 😭

Every one who knows me (especially my mom) knows I do not like Hindi and I am terrible at it. In the words of my aaji who teaches me Hindi, I make a कचोरी of हिन्दी व्याकरण. So if I have to frame sentences in a worksheet mom to the rescue.

Disadvantage #4: Mute TV 📺 

If mom is on a call and I’m watching TV I have to mute the TV. It is a little inconvenient.

Advantage #5: Spending time with working mom  😁

Before lockdown, mom used to go to office Monday to Friday, 9 to 5. So we spent less time together. Now in this lockdown, we got to spent more time. A definite plus.

Disadvantage #5: Walking around camera field of vision in class 🚶‍♀️  

It looks funny when someone’s parents are walking around in the background. Unfortunately, mom is one of them. To get steps she walks behind me... It is a little funny.

Bonus Advantage: I teach her Gen Z stuff

 Ok this was mom’s suggestion. I teach her coding(someone’s been irregular with coding - Mom) and correct her so called “cool speech”. But is it really Gen Z stuff? No it is just basics....

Bonus Disadvantage: Cleaning OCD

Mom is a cleaning freak(she says she has Obsessive Compulsive Disorder - OCD). If you have her standing on your head to put the Lego away or cover the Nintendo it gets REALLY annoying. But sometimes I don’t mind it.

Hope you enjoyed the first post of The Flip Side because there are always two sides to a coin.